


Scent of the Forest

by AutumnMooncakes



Category: Camp Camp
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-16
Updated: 2020-07-16
Packaged: 2021-03-05 01:15:04
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 625
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25296022
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AutumnMooncakes/pseuds/AutumnMooncakes
Summary: Why David started sleeping with a small log. This takes place during the episode ‘Scout’s Dishonor’.
Comments: 1
Kudos: 14





	Scent of the Forest

**Author's Note:**

> WARNING: Mentions of insomnia

David stepped out of the mess hall with a lantern and a wide smile on his face. “Ah, another wonderful day at Camp Campbell. All that’s left to do now is recharge with a full eight hours of lying in bed … awake! Waiting for tomorrow.”   
Nighttime was a dreamy and surreal world. The shapes and colors of everything were different.   
The sky was a metallic purple, stamped with a perfect full moon and with no sign of rainclouds. David appreciated every type of weather nature had to offer, but this night was still one of the best.   
David went straight to the campers’ tents. No lights were on in any of them, and he could see no movement. That seemed like a good sign. David hoped that any campers with sleeping problems would come to him, and not simply lie awake. He knew how lonely that felt.   
The fire in the middle of the tents hadn’t gone out yet. David put the lantern down and stirred the logs with a long stick. The hypnotic crackling of the flames was relaxing. The only other noise in the camp was the insects.   
With difficulty, David tore his eyes away from the fire. Beyond the tents, the counselors’ cabin was dark. Gwen was probably already asleep. She could fall into bed and doze off in two minutes, something which David envied.   
It wasn’t a big deal. There were plenty of things David could fill his mind with to entertain himself. He thought about the activities, his childhood, fantasies of the children enjoying camp for once … he just had to hope that nothing negative would crop up.   
He knew he should go to bed as soon as possible. But that would usually mean many hours of silence and idleness. And even if he could make it fun, he wasn’t looking forward to it.   
David turned towards the forest and decided to go for a stroll. Maybe if he burned more energy now, he would be tired enough to actually sleep later on.   
The forest, both above and below him, was inky black. With his lantern, he could only see a couple of feet in front of him, and it made everything seem ominous. David always preferred lanterns to flashlights because they gave out a softer glow. He made his footsteps light, looking out for any animals. Bushes rustled, but he failed to glimpse what had made the noises.   
David’s toe bumped something hard. Not enough to cause damage, but enough to make David look down at the offending object.   
It was a dark brown log, about half the length of David’s arm.   
David placed the lantern down and picked up the log with both hands. The log was smooth, but not too smooth. There were no leaves attached to it and it was surprisingly even and symmetrical. It was the most perfect log he had ever seen.   
David didn’t want to leave the log in the forest, even though that was where it belonged. Cradling the log under one arm and holding the lantern in the other, he went back to the counselors’ cabin.   
He tiptoed inside, not wanting to wake Gwen, and extinguished the lantern. The full moon provided more than enough light from the window.   
David was about to put the log on the table when the lighting hut the log in a certain way. It looked like a bolster.   
Putting his nightcap on, David laid the log on his bed, got under the sheets, and put one hand over the log. Its woody scent calmed him and he wasn’t even aware of his eyes closing.   
Soon, he couldn’t tell whether he was experiencing reality or his dreams. The scent of the forest was in them both.


End file.
